


New Teacher

by TanyaReed



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Relic Hunter
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-10-17
Updated: 2012-10-17
Packaged: 2017-11-16 12:32:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 503
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/539457
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TanyaReed/pseuds/TanyaReed
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Written between 2005-2007.  Sydney gets a new job.</p>
            </blockquote>





	New Teacher

Sydney could hear the whispering, and she knew the meaning, even if the words weren't quite audible. She walked up to the blackboard, wondering for a moment if taking a job teaching children in a foreign country was really wise. She knew that teaching pre-teens and teenagers for her year away from Trinity would be stranger than anything she was used to, but she also knew that, if it panned out, it would lead to a wondrous relic.

She smiled at the room full of eleven year olds, but they all seemed too stunned to smile back. With a shrug, she turned to the blackboard. There was a collective gasp as she picked up the chalk with her fingers and started to write "Professor Sydney Fox".

"Excuse me, Professor." A timid voice came from the front row. 

Sydney eyed the skinny boy with blond hair and freckles. "Yes, Mr. Humphries?"

"If you...I mean...We want to...um..."

Sydney raised an eyebrow as she waited patiently.

"What he means to say is," another boy got up, his face scornful, "you shouldn't be here."

A rumble swept through the classroom, but it stilled when Sydney raised a hand. She had been warned that there might be trouble, especially with students from this boy's ilk.

"It's not right," he continued. The murmurs sounded like agreement.

Sydney slid her glasses down her nose and looked at the boy over the top of them. "And why is that, Mr. Jones?"

"You're a...You're a..."

"A muggle?" she asked, unable to keep the amusement out of her voice. She was not afraid of these children, even if they would soon have the power to do things she had only imagined.

"Muggles don't belong at Hogwarts."

"Is that so?" She moved over to her desk and propped herself on the edge. "I was especially chosen by your headmaster because I _am_ a muggle. Who better to teach Muggle Studies? I've heard your people have been through some tough times lately, and the first instinct of some of them was to take it out on some of mine. I believe a large part of this was because of ignorance. " This time her gaze sought out that of every child in the room. "I have learned to believe that the best teacher is one who knows his or her subject well, and I know muggles very well. Sit down, Mr. Jones."

The boy sat, grumbling to himself, "a muggle at Hogarts," but the rest of the children were looking at her almost eagerly. 

Once he was settled, she said, "My name is Professor Sydney Fox, and I will be teaching Muggle Studies for the year. I am a muggle. You will learn from me, and I will learn from you. Are there any questions?"

The timid blond boy hesitantly raised a hand.

"Yes, Mr. Humphries?"

"Is it true that muggles are always born in pairs?"

There was a collective groan, and Sydney sighed. It was going to be a long year.


End file.
